Sit! Stay! Speak! Read Free

car keys. “Thank you so much.”
    The veterinarian waved her off. “It’s fine. Everything will be fine.”
    â€œI’ll check on him tomorrow, if that’s okay,” Addie replied.
    â€œBetter give him a couple of days before he’s ready.”
    Addie nodded and turned toward Jasper. “It was nice to meet you, Jasper.”
    Before he could respond, Addie was out the door and into the muggy May night, leaving two bewildered men staring after her.

CHAPTER 3
    E UNICE WAS A LITTLE TOWN OF TEN THOUSAND PEOPLE NESTLED deep within the heart of the Arkansas Delta. It was the kind of place where people worked, lived, and died generation after generation. It was the kind of place oblivious to the outside world. It was the kind of place Addie had come to in an attempt to escape, but she couldn’t shake the events of the previous evening.
    Groggy, she sat up in bed and rubbed her eyes. If she was going to be bringing a dog here, she’d have to get the house in order. There was a shed out back that she planned on cleaning out as well. Once she mustered up the energy. “At least I’ve got some motivation,” she said out loud to her empty house.
    The house was rather adorable. It sat on a large lot on a dead-end street. The neighbors had kept the yard work up after Aunt Tilda died last autumn. Addie guessed that was what Jasper had meant when he mentioned the house sitting empty, although she didn’t know why people would care. Her aunt had kept thehouse, a nineteenth-century bungalow, nice and neat. It was small, as bungalows usually are, but there was plenty of space for one person. The house had a steeply pitched roof covering a wide porch that Addie was in love with. As a child, she’d spent many summer nights playing on that porch. She pictured herself lounging there at night, maybe with a good book and a glass of wine. The living room was nice and large, and there were two bedrooms for Addie to choose from. Unlike the carpet that Addie was used to in the houses in Chicago, her aunt’s house had hardwood floors throughout, and she was still getting used to the creaking noise they made every time she walked. The kitchen overlooked the backyard, which had once held a beautiful garden.
    The outside of the house could use a fresh coat of paint, Addie mused, but she had no idea where she was going to find the odd shade of yellow it had been painted. Yes, there is some work to do, Addie thought, but it’s nothing I can’t handle.
    It wasn’t the kind of house in which Addie had ever envisioned herself living. Of course, this wasn’t the town in which she’d ever envisioned herself living. The only place she’d ever called home was Chicago, and there, she’d only ever lived in an apartment.
    The phone rang, and Addie shook herself out of her daydream.
    â€œHi, Mom.”
    â€œAdelaide, honey.” Her mother’s voice was smooth and calm. “How are you? You were supposed to call last night.”
    Addie swung her legs over the side of the bed. “I’m sorry, Mom. I was so tired, I must have fallen asleep.”
    â€œWhat have you been up to?”
    â€œJust unpacking, mostly. How is everything?”
    â€œOh, we’re good. You know Jerry. Retirement is boring him. I expect he’ll be back at work before the summer is out.”
    â€œI still can’t believe he actually retired!” Addie giggled. “Is he marching around shouting orders at the cats?”
    â€œMore like marching around shouting orders at his wife,” Addie’s mother grumbled. “Once a marine, always a marine.”
    Addie rolled her eyes, even though her mother couldn’t see her. “Oh, I know.”
    â€œHe said to tell you hello.”
    Addie grinned into the receiver, picturing the gruff hug her stepfather had given her the day she left Chicago. “Tell him I said hello, too.”
    â€œAddie, there’s